The 2023 calendar year has been a good one for Hollywood Casino at Greektown.
With revenue up nearly 15% from 2022, its easy to look at what Greektown is doing right this year.
But, the reality isn’t as much as what is going right this year as much as it is what was going wrong in previous years.
With construction projects in and around the casino wrapped up, Hollywood Casino at Greektown is now able to be the best version of itself.
Hollywood Casino revenue growing in 2023
While two of the three Detroit casinos are down in revenue through eight months of 2023 compared to the first eight months of 2022, Hollywood Casino at Greektown is the opposite.
Hollywood Casino has amassed $194.8 million in revenue this year. That is 14.6% higher than the revenue was through eight months of 2022 ($170 million).
Overall, Hollywood Casino has recorded 10 consecutive months of at least $22 million in monthly casino revenue, dating back to the end of 2022.
With an average of $24.3 million per month in 2023, Hollywood Casino is on pace for $292.2 million in total revenue for the year. That would be its largest yearly revenue total since 2019 ($337.2 million).
MORE: Cashless gaming available at Hollywood Greektown
What’s different at Hollywood Casino at Greektown?
The biggest difference you might find at Hollywood Casino at Greektown is the lack of construction.
Following the pandemic, the hotel and casino underwent multiple renovation projects that impacted the gaming floor.
The hotel was under construction throughout a large period of 2022 that left it at about 25% capacity.
“Last year, and even prior to that, we found ourselves really, with a lot of construction at the property. Our hotel was still fully under construction. We have a number of customers that also choose to stay with us in the hotel, so when your hotel is barely operating at a quarter capacity, that definitely has an impact on your casino revenue,” said Hollywood Casino at Greektown Vice President and General Manager John Drake.
On top of the hotel construction, the casino was also undergoing a complete overhaul of its bar and lounge, Rock Bar, on the first floor. That left a large portion of the casino on the first floor under construction.
To make matters worse, I-375 was also undergoing a lot of construction in the summer of 2022, impacting people’s ability to easily access Hollywood Casino at Greektown.
“I would say about 90% of our customers get to us through that highway,” Drake said.
Late last year, Greektown also elected to open up indoor smoking on its second floor. Though it’s hard to correlate the data, Hollywood Casino did see a big increase in its revenue over the last winter. So, the move may have been beneficial to the bottom line as smoking players didn’t have to leave their games to take a smoking break.
Online conversion to Hollywood Casino coming
More big things are happening for Hollywood Casino at Greektown.
A PENN Entertainment property, its online product will soon be making the shift from Barstool Sports to ESPN Bet and Hollywood Casino Online. That will give Michigan online casinos and Michigan online sportsbooks a new app to use.
Locally, that will have an impact on the Barstool Sportsbook located at Hollywood Casino at Greektown. The casino already has plans in the making for the eventual switch to ESPN.
“So, we’re obviously pretty excited about where we’re going to be going with ESPN Bet. We’ve even some activities planned around our Barstool Restaurant, we’re going to be able to kind of refresh that,” Drake said.
In July, PENN briefly shut down Barstool Sportsbook & Casino for multiple days to convert the app to utilizing theScore media and gaming technology platform. That platform will be used for the upcoming ESPN Bet and Hollywood Casino Online.
“In the online space, I think you’re going to see the biggest impact from that group. Because we’re definitely not only launching the new brand, but we’re on our own platform now,” Drake said. “That platform now puts us in control of our own destiny. Not just from a marketing standpoint, but from a user interface perspective as well. The feedback for online customers using the new platform has been phenomenal.”
The Hollywood Casino brand for the online casino will open the door for more seamless promotions between the online app and the retail location. Both can utilize the PENN Play rewards program, which replaced the MyChoice rewards program.
“The team here has a very good understanding in terms of the general retail customers looking for convenience,” Drake said. “They’re looking for various promotions that keep them engaged. The team does a fabulous job with the VIP group here, building relationships and making sure that that customer group is definitely taken care of.”
With all pieces coming together for Hollywood Casino at Greektown, optimism is high that it can continue to see revenue growth from its retail casino.
